Dear Ms Irwin

Thank you for your letter of 8 May 2009 concerning a petition for the World Heritage listing of the Dampier Archipelago. I regret the delay in responding.

As you would be aware, only the Australian Government as the State Party to the World Heritage Convention can submit nominations for World Heritage listing to the World Heritage Committee. In accordance with the Intergovernmental Agreement on the Environment (1992) nominations to the World Heritage List are developed collaboratively with the relevant state or territory government.

At its meeting in June 2007, the Environment Protection and Heritage Council agreed to support the preparation of a new Australian World Heritage Tentative List for the next ten years. A World Heritage Tentative List is an inventory of those properties which a State Party considers suitable for possible inscription on the World Heritage List.

State and territory governments were invited by the Australian Government to submit places for consideration for the Tentative List. On 22 May 2009 the Environment Protection and Heritage Council announced that Cape York, West McDonnell Range and extensions to Fraser Island and the Gondawana Rainforests of Australia will be added to Australia’s Tentative List. Following further community consultation, these four places will join the Australian Convict Sites and Ningaloo Reef and Cape Range which are already on Australia’s World Heritage Tentative List.

The Dampier Archipelago was not submitted by the Western Australian Government for inclusion on the Tentative List. I trust this information is of assistance.

from the Minister for Environment, Heritage and the Arts, Mr Garrett